Launch rehearsed for new rocket

KAGOSHIMA – Japan’s space agency said Monday the launch of its new Epsilon rocket has been rescheduled for Saturday.

The Epsilon, Japan’s first new rocket in 12 years, is expected to blast off between 1:45 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 14, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said.

JAXA conducted a launch rehearsal Sunday after the Epsilon’s initial liftoff was postponed by a glitch late last month.

The rehearsal at Uchinoura Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture “went well” for the solid-fuel rocket, an official of the state-run agency said.

The Epsilon launch was canceled 19 seconds before liftoff on Aug. 28 after an abnormality in the rocket’s posture was detected. It was later found to be normal.A time lag of 0.07 second in the transmission of data from computers aboard the rocket to the ground control center was the cause of the trouble.